Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1887-01-14
Mrs. Drusa's A.trOufous Crime.

N1rS. DrISHR IALrOERoNS NFanGs
A few days. ago Gov, Hill of New
York iss,'etl am executive, order post
poning the execution Of: Mrs, Roxalana
DEuse, under sentence OF death for the
murder of hen husband; from Dec 20,
the date fixed in the sentsnc, till Feb.
%. The Governor says, he does this in
orderte give the State Legislature an
opportunity to modify tAe law OF capt.
tai punishment in its, application, and
adds that as far as he is. concerned the
case is>olosed and the::wpman must SUI
fer the penalty of her crime on the day
fixed unless in tho meantinle the law
shall huyo been changed The Coy
ernor says TINT it. was.a clear case of
murders, and that he can find no reason
for interference with the penalty except
the sex Of the condemned, which the
law does not take into account. He
SAYS:
The evidence shows that the killing
was most brutal andi atluciN,s in its
character. Briefly stated, the facts
satisfactorily established ane as follows:
The family consisted. OF the deceased
and Mrs. DruSe, the daughter Mary.
aged 10 years, the son George, aged 10
years, Il nephew, Erank Gates, aged IA
years. A quarrel had; occurred the
morning of tho homicide between the
deceased and the. defendant at the
breakfast table. The deceased was
still at the table, and during the quar-
rel of words the defendant went into
another room and, took>a loaded 1evol-
yer which was there and, putting it
under her apron.. returned and whis-
pered, to tho boys to. 60 out of doors,
which they did. leaving herself, the
daughter Mary, ands the deceased in the
ROOM. Mary then. placed y rope
around her father neck while he was
at the table, and the defendant fred the
revolver once or twice at him, wound
ing him, and he fell over sideways in
his chair. while the defendant, being
unable to make the revolver 60 off
again.. called to the nephew. Frank,
who came into the house together with
the boy George, wh~eupon the prisoner
gave. the revolver to the nephew, and,
under threat of killing him
compelled him. to fire it off two or three
times, and the deceased being hit by
the shots rolled off the. chair upon the
floor, and then she seized an ak and hit
her husband on the head with it, and
continued hitting hinn on the neck until
she chopped his head off She then
caused the head as. well as the body to
be taken into the parlor, and during
that day and evening the body was cut
up with an ak and was burned in the
stove She Threatened TO kill the boys
if they told what had occurred. Mrs.
Druse had previously made threats
against the deceased and boasted that
she would be rid of lnim some day.
These and other facts almost too
horrible for dcscri ption mark the case
as plain one Of deliberate and pre-
meditated murder There seems to be
scarcely a mitigating circumstance.
The daughter Mary aided and assisted
her mother in the murder. and after the
conviction of her mother she pleaded
guilty to murder in the second degree,
which plea, OH account of her youth, the
fact that she WAS probably acting under
the influence of her mother, and other
circumstances, was accepted by the
District Attorney, and she was sentenced
to State Prison for life.